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I have similar issue. Drove to cabin few days ago and started to wonder why fuel consumption was almost 2l higher than normal. Started suspecting sticking breaks. When the journey was over, I touched the driver side break disk and it was boiling hot. Took the vehicle to the dealer and they said the piston was stuck. I need new piston, thankfully Lexus Relax will cover this item. Just need to wait about 2 weeks the parts to arrive. Until that I need to avoid any unnecessary driving not to bend the disks and save the pads.

ym. 2015 Lexus IS 300h, 135k kms in odo.

15" IS 300h. Owned 3 years, 130k kms in ODO.

Fuel pump hose replace, but it was a recall.

One bad 12V Battery.

Everything else is still original, even break disks.

Thats it.

We've had a very harsh winter here in the nordics. Below -30 C many days. No problems with the Lexus, starts up like it was summer.

At least outside UK, we get great service in dealership. Service is always top notch, never left unsatisfied. The service is also much, much cheaper than rival German counterparts.

Overall quality of my IS 300h has also been top notch. Only issue has been flat 12v Battery and some slight issues with AC system but they got solved.

I thought that Prius 2023 (PHEV) would be the follower of my IS but after test drive I felt very disappointed.

Good points:

- Looks amazing, one of the best looking new cars out there. Certainly turn heads.

- Handling and driveability good, although not as good as IS (chassis and RWD makes IS still better)

- Performance was good, much more crisp than IS (below 7s to 100km/h) but the eCvt and engine felt a lot harsher in Prius compared to sophistication of IS. Just feels much cheaper overall, not good at this price point.

- Range and consumption in EV mode were great and performance was more than adequate only EV mode

Bad:

- Quality inside bad, rattling plastics everywhere, the test car had even scratches already!

- Road noise completely too loud, IS is whisper quite in comparison (the (too)big tires on Prius may be one culprit here)

- Very cramped inside and the boot size is a (bad) joke

- Seats weren't as good as IS, eventhough it had a lot more configurations

- Annoying beebs and warnings CONSTANTLY, would drive anyone nuts in a matter of minutes

- Didn't like the dashboard location, doesn't work for me

- Call me nuts, but I missed the flappy pads from the IS with sportier driving. I like using them for "downshifting"

- Price vs. Quality is just not matching at all, it's as expensive as basic Lexus

So overall I'd rank IS a lot better car, even at almost 10y old. Just feels so much more expensive, better built and sturdy compared to the Prius.

That to buy after IS? ES is too big and it'd need much more power for a car that size. I probably test drive the new hybrid Honda Civic next. It looks good inside and out. Volvos are desirable also but they cost a lot more and maintenance is much more expensive. Germans, I don't like them for various reasons.

That was the reason I chose the base model instead after test driving both F-Sport and normal Executive trims. The F-Sport was just too harsh.

I had this same issue with Servomotor codes with same symptoms(unresponsive Air con for about a minute after start) but it started work again by itself after sometime. I suspect it may also be software bug of some kind, because all air condition modes and vents worked just fine, even when the issue was there. If it breaks again, I can take it to repairshop. It's covered by the Lexus Relax warranty.

Dont you have Lexus Relax warranty in UK? That should cover air condition systems as well.

I have still original 12V Battery in my 2015 IS. In last maintenance they checked it and it still charges and holds Vs just fine. Only thing they said is that the voltage is bit low, probably because the Battery is just so old. My drive is mainly short drives, maybe one/two longer drives in a week. And I live in very cold climate zone where winter are long and very cold. Still going to change it probably soonish.

I thought my Parking break was faulty too but I didn't just push it hard enough against the floor, you know when it's pushed enough when it stays down completely. The light will come on even if you don't push it hard enough, which it IMO shouldn't. A design fault in my books. Anyway it's dumb that IS has this old school parking break but other models have automatic P break.

23 hours ago, Richard-W said:

I have a 2014 IS300h with 70,000 miles and a fault on the air con control panel on start up. There is power to the panel as airbag and seat belt lights come on, but the air con controls take about 20 seconds or 200 yards driving for the full display to come on so adjustments can be made and then works fine. I had the system re-gassed last service.

Has anyone else experienced the same problem?

I had this problem. On maintenance they got codes for servomotor failure for some of the servos ie. the air con system stucks on boot and resets itself after about 30s or so. The problem went away on itsself after some months and now the air con works and starts immediately when I start the car. Could be some software bug (or sign of 12V Battery going old/bad?) also since my air condition have been working perfectly during all this time. Changing the servo is very expensive since lots of disassembling is needed in mk3 IS. I think in earlier models it was much easier to do.

The change will be a rough one. Corolla is plasticy, loud and feels so much cheaper than IS. It's not a bad car but there isn't any luxury to be found anywhere.

5 hours ago, Colinb623 said:

Had an Audi sline A6 for 5 years and made the switch to an is300h Fsport at the beginning of this year . 

 

Build quality wise , I'd have the Audi slightly ahead . My is300h is a fresh car and has some creaks from dash and slight wind noise from windows when at speed. 

Reliability wise , the Lexus is street's ahead .the first 6 months of owning the audi broke my heart . Only for a good warranty with the dealer, I would have been out of pockets a huge amount. After all had been fixed , the audi was a great car . But as I said , I'd have more faith in the lexus .

 

Comfort , even though the audi was am sline with 20inch alloys and a hard suspension,  I think it was a more comfortable car than the lexus . 

 

Driving experience,  the lexus to me is a very nice place to be .Long journeys are a delight and the fact that it's a smaller car than my old audi, means it's easier to park, manoeuvre etc.

 

Running costs , the lexus is a petrol,  the audi was a diseal.  Enough said . I went with the is300h as I only drive my car at the weekend,  I have a company vechile for during the week . Service costs seem about the same aswell.

 

Overall I honestly think the is300h is a great buy for anyone seeking Reliability,  comfort on long journeys and a good driving experience.  Also there is literally thousands of Audis and BMW on the road these days . The lexus to me is a bit unique  

 

 

I think it's bit unfair to compare IS to A6 since they are different segment. IS is comparable to A4, C-class and BMW 3-series, ES and GS is more comparable to A6. At least A4 and 3-series are not so refined/comfortable(though a lot more sportier) to drive than IS. The base models are crap on Germans, you need to buy a lot more to get comparable quality and equipment on those cars.

When I bought 300h, I test drove similarly priced petrol-Germans (with poor options, their base models just suck) and Lexus felt much more premium and exquisitive to drive, sit in and to look at. Sure the Germans are sportier and beefier to drive but on a daily, I'd choose Lexus any day of the week. Just much more refined ride and comfort. I'd rather compare it to bulk 5-series or E-class as much as comfort and refinement is concerned.

The hybrid versions with good specs however, the Germans may be better because they feel and perform more modern. However they are much more expensive to buy and to maintain and I'd be worried about the reliability of those hybrid systems bought second hand.

Is it really that much worse on F-Sport? I reset the meter when changed back to summer tyres in April. Now I have 5,4l/100km, which is about 52MPG in UK. In Winter it's about liter more, since we have very cold weather here.

Hi,

New NON/UK user here.

I've owned IS 300h about a year now (Executive trim YM 2015, 121 k kms on ODO). Bought it second hand from a used car sales company. Car is in great condition. Unfortunately the yearly maintenance found an error code B1455 for AC servomotor. The mechanic said its expensive to replace and lots of disassembling is needed in the dashboard. The thing is that I haven't even noticed anything wrong with A/C, except the fact it takes about a minute to boot up after every car start(buttons/modes etc. being unresponsive). All the AC modes work just fine and cold/warm air circulates perfectly. It has been this from the start, so it's "old" issue it seems. I just thought the slow startup is a feature.

So opinions: Should I just leave it be and live with the laggy bootup of the system, or is this important to fix/Will it break something else in the future, thus becoming even more expensive? Is there a way to reset the error codes that it would start faster, not get stuck on the error code?

br

Andy